An administrative law judge has dismissed a complaint filed by two Republican state senators that Secretary of State Mark Ritchie violated state law through his comments on the proposed voter ID constitutional amendment.

Sens. Scott Newman of Hutchinson and Mike Parry of Waseca complained to the state Office of Administrative Hearings in October that Ritchie, a Democrat and amendment opponent, made false statements and improperly used his office to work against the amendment.

The complaint focused on statements that Ritchie made on the Secretary of State website and through other communications.

Judge Bruce Johnson, in an order issued Thursday, Nov. 1, found no probable cause to believe violations of law had occurred.

Either the conduct alleged wasn’t covered by the statutes cited, or complainants failed to establish it constituted a violation, or the statute at issue was superseded by another, Johnson found.

To take one example, Newman and Parry said Ritchie’s claim that implementing voter ID could cost $50 million was false, but Johnson found it “within the range of other estimates.

“The future cost of implementing the proposed voter identification cannot currently be proven or disproven,” the judge wrote. “The Respondent’s statement about the future cost of implementing the proposed voter identification amendment may be pessimistic, but it is not demonstrably false.”

Even if Ritchie had made statements found to be false and actionable, the judge wrote, complainants failed to show he made them with knowledge of their falsity or reckless disregard as to their truth or falsity.

On the question of whether Ritchie’s statements constituted “campaign material” that would require a disclaimer, Johnson said “It is fair to say that the website materials focus primarily on potential problems that might arise in the voter identification amendment,” but he said it’s “doubtful that the material … rises to the level of ‘express advocacy.'”

But even if it did, the judge said another, superseding, part of state law specifically authorizes the secretary of state to publish such materials on his official website.

Newman and Parry had also argued that by instructing his staff to help disseminate the information, Ritchie was in effect compelling them to take part in political activity, which violates the law. But Johnson said the complainants failed to establish probable cause to believe such a violation had occurred.

Newman said Thursday he still thinks Ritchie’s conduct was inappropriate but that it may not have violated the laws in question. “Maybe the statute needs strengthening to prevent this kind of thing in the future,” he added.

Newman said he didn’t intend to pursue the matter further with the Office of Administrative Hearings but that review by the state court of appeals was a potential avenue for him and Parry.

He also said there is still an outstanding complaint on the matter with the legislative auditor’s office. And he said he and Parry intend to file an amended complaint with the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board, which declined to pursue an investigation of an earlier complaint.

These efforts won’t come to an end on Nov. 6, Newman said. “I will pursue this to its logical conclusion. Election Day doesn’t stop anything.”

In recent months, Ritchie has been a target of Republicans who charge he has shown bias against both the voter ID amendment — which would require Minnesota voters to present a photo ID at the polls — and another one that would add a definition of marriage as a man-woman union to the state constitution.

Ritchie has consistently declined to comment. Email and phone messages left with his office Thursday were not returned.

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